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The revolutions sweeping the Middle East in 2011 were unlike any the world had ever seen. Brutal regimes that had been in power for many decades were suddenly swarmed by unstoppable mobs of freedom seekers. Now, one of the key figures behind the Egyptian uprising tells the riveting inside story of what happened and presents lessons for all of us on how to unleash the power of crowds.

Wael Ghonim was a little-known 30-year-old Google executive in the fall of 2010 when he anonymously launched a Facebook page to protest the death of an Egyptian man at the hands of security forces. The page's followers expanded quickly and moved from online protests to nonconfrontational public gatherings. Then, on January 14, 2011, they made history when they announced a revolution. Over 350,000 friends clamored to join. On January 25, as the revolution began in earnest, Ghonim was captured and held for 12 days of brutal interrogation - and when he emerged and gave a speech on national television, the protests grew even more intense. Four days later, Mubarak was gone.

The lessons Ghonim draws will inspire each of us: Forget the past. Don't plan ahead. Let the crowd make its own decisions. Welcome to Revolution 2.0.

Wael Ghonim was born in Cairo and grew up in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, earning a degree from Cairo University in 2004 and an MBA from the American University in Cairo in 2007. He joined Google in 2008, rising to become head of marketing for Google Middle East and North Africa. He is currently on sabbatical from Google to launch a nongovernmental organization supporting education and technology in Egypt.

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Wael Ghonim has become an iconic figure of the Egyptian revolution since he anonymously started the Facebook Page, "We are All Khalid Said," criticizing police brutality in Egypt after young activist Khalid Said was beaten to death in broad daylight by the police in Alexandria for posting a video on police corruption on the internet. In the first few days of the revolution, Ghonim was kidnapped by plainclothes policeman but released later. He appeared on a talk show at a time when the protests were reaching a dead end. Instead of delivering a fiery speech full of revolutionary fervor as expected, he wept and apologized publicly to the parents of protesters who were killed during the protests, saying "don't blame us, blame those who are power hungry." His tearful words ignited the protests again.

This book is more than a personal account of Wael Ghoneim's role in the revolution. It is a reflection of his generation's unexpected involvement in their country's political fate. Long viewed as spoiled Westernized brats, liberal middle class Egyptian youths proved to be much more than affluent fast car driving beach kids with an identity crisis. Revolution 2.O delves deep into the mindset of a generation that surprised even itself. While the world expected, and almost wished, any upheaval in the Middle East to come from the radical right wing, the roaring voices of pro-democracy and liberal human rights activists drowned the stereotyping of the Middle East. It is sad how world politics, working with Arab regimes and military, are trying desperately to push the right wing to the foreground of the new Middle East at the expense of the young activists who initiated the rebellion no one dared even talk about. It is important to read Revolution 2.0 not only with the events of the revolution as the backdrop of the narrative and analysis but with the book itself as a testimony and an account of the true origins of the Egyptian revolution.

It is a must read. This account will become even more important as such true origins are overshadowed by world governments' deals with the right wing and the military in the Middle East to hijack the revolutions sparked by pro-democracy and liberal activists.

Wael Ghonim's name was first revealed to me, as it was to Egyptians and the world, in February 2011, during the tensest time of the Revolution, before the fall of Mubarak. Before that the world had been in the dark about the identity of the administrator of the 'We are all Khalid Said' web page that helped launch the revolution. I was in Egypt at the time and lived through these events day by day. Along with the rest of Egypt, I watched this unknown young man, Wael Ghonim, appear on a talk show called 'Ten PM' with Mona El Shazly, upon his release from 12 days detention by Mubarak's security services. Tearful, haggard, unkempt, he related his ordeal and begged for forgiveness from the parents of the young martyrs who had died in Tahrir for the revolution Ghonim was instrumental in calling for and organizing.Most of all Ghonim was desperate to refute charges of treason or of foreign collusion. This is a case he makes persuasively in his book. He details the path of a successful young Google executive leading an exceptionally comfortable life in Dubai who chooses to come back to Egypt to take part in the revolution and gets arrested and psychologically tortured.Most interesting is the behind the scenes, keystroke by keystroke depiction of the role Face Book and social media played in propagating and organizing dissent into the first 'internet revolution'.Samia Serageldin

Wael Ghoniem spoke from his heart in this book, you get this feeling in every page of the book. I bought the Kindle version started reading it at 9:00 pm and could not stop reading till I finished it at 4:00 am. Although I am an Egyptian living abroad who knew about many of the events in the book and followed it closely over past year. Yet Wael gives the general aspect of the event and jumps into details behind the scene that not every person knew about the revolution. It gets a little personal about Wael in some cases yet still interesting to understand the personality of this guy, which I see him as a reflection of this generation. Well done Wael.....and thanks for documenting it in such a nice way. In many instances I felt you were expressing my own feelings. May Allah bless you and reward you for the good that you have done and will do through publishing this book.

Read this from cover to cover and I learned SO much about a volatile time where I was alive, and yet only heard an inkling of. These days, I've been reading less and less, because I have less time so it's forced me to be a picky reader. I had to read this for a class but as a picky reader I'd read this regardless. This is the type of required reading for a class that makes university meet the enlightening expectations I had as a kid.

This book is a must read. Written by Wael Ghoneim, it goes into the heart and mind of one of the critical forces behind the movement of the Egyptian people. The book takes you through the political scene in Egypt through the eyes of a young activist who shares his dreams, his fears, and his aspirations. Reading the book, especially for those who lived the events but did not have a full picture of the situation or the actions behind the scenes, you feel like you are riding a roller coaster of emotions, as if you are on the brink of a volcano expecting it to erupt at any moment. you know what is coming, yet you hold your breath as if afraid that things will not turn out as you know they will.For a full understanding of the Egyptian revolution and the events preceding and leading up to it... read this book.